Reviews by jmdr:

More User Reviews:

341mL bottle with wax on the cap. Pours a cloudy amber color with a tan head. Nice aroma with citrus, pine, and some malty sweetness. Similar flavors, bitter but has a very balanced taste. Medium-full bodied with a very nice mouthfeel. This is a really good Imperial IPA! (271 characters)

12oz bottle, with a weird but strangely attractive thin green wax coating around the cap, which is actually a might bit frustrating to remove with a standard bottle-opener without getting wayward flaky detritus everywhere.

This beer pours a clear medium orange-brick amber hue, with two fingers or so of puffy, rocky, and somewhat creamy off-white head, which leaves some stellar honeycombed and webbed lace around the glass as it lazily recedes.

It smells of sweet, pungently citrusy fruit - orange, pineapple, lemon and kiwi - with some tangy pine hop essence fighting for floor space in there too, over top a sticky caramel and toffee maltiness, all well cared for by a soft boozy warmth. The taste is a strong bittersweet blend of bready, toffee-heavy caramel malt, sugary citrus cream, heady grass, and edgy pine and spruce hops. The big ABV does well to keep its head down at this juncture.

The carbonation is on the soft side, never really making any sort of mark, the body a slickly capable medium-full weight for the style, and perhaps a bit oily in its smoothness, with a simmering warm creaminess. It finishes well off-dry, the caramel and toffee in for the long haul, and the hops maintaining a sort of to hell with it all, uber fruity/bitter pose.

A wonderfully challenging Canadian DIPA. Not a West Coast palate-searing hop bomb, despite the egregiously advertised 100 IBU, nor a malty compromise in deference to the British, but a lovely balanced affair of all things in the extreme. On par with my local DIPA, Alley Kat's Bad Hare Day, but with perhaps more than a wee bit more ooomph in overall flavour intensity. Canada's best - bring it on, y'all consigned to south of the 49th! (1,703 characters)

Very drinkable leafy minty IPA, citrusy and there are hop oils. 100 IBU takes a first sip or two to get used to.Regular sized bottle, which is not enough, thanks Piscator. Great example of a DIPA.Good cask, had 3 years later at Volo. VG aromas, IBU in taste, smooth drinker without a palate erasing effect. (307 characters)

A - a cloudy brown, one thumb of white head with nice retention and great sticky lacingS - florals, citrus, toasty grains, and light spiceD - strong citrus hops with some floral and pine, light grainy malt flavour, and a pleasant spicy finishM - a pleasant tangy bitter that stays wet through the finish with a slight spicy tingleD - very nice hop flavours with the alcohol well masked, Half Pints never dissapoints (419 characters)

Pours a viscous golden-honey colour with a frothy off-white head receding to a thin covering...which then disappears. Some lacing in spite of the non-existent head.

Huge hops smell with fresh cut grass, pine trees and grapefruit all making appearances. A little caramel maltiness in the background. In terms of hoppy beers I've smelt, this is among the very best.

I was actually expecting more hops; the label describes it as ridiculously hoppy and I don't think it's quite there. (EDIT: Okay, this is THEIR most ridiculously hoppy beer. This is a fact.) Still though, it's pretty delicious. The exceptional hops smell doesn't show through as much in the taste. Very well balanced between hops and malt. Canadians don't seem to like brewing such extremely hoppy beers as Americans do. I've only tried one or two Canadian IPA's that compare to American hop bomb-style IPAs and this isn't one of them. The hops are just up to the level where they would be out of balance if there were any more added. The 8% is there only to add an extra tanginess to the hops and is otherwise not perceptible.

For me, the feel is where this beer shines above all else. For an IPA, this beer has a world-class feel going on; so thick and sticky. This is the feel I always want to find in an IPA and so rarely do. Perfect.

This is unbelievably drinkable. This could be my favorite Canadian IPA, I can't remember trying one better than this. Thank you Half Pints, this is awesome! (1,466 characters)

Clear orange gold in colour, with a perfect two finger head that is just a bit creamy and off-white. Lacing sticks in sheets as the head recedes.

Big citrus hop aroma, not bitter smelling, more fruity. Mixed in is a touch of pine.

Pure hop flavour, from the tip of the tongue back to the finish. Grapefruit citrus bitterness, and a little bit of heat from the alcohol. Flashes of pine at moments. As advertised, a true hop bomb.

Medium bodied, with a bit of an oily feel. Carbonation feels light but is more than sufficient to support the body.

This is a well brewed beer. Not a quaffer for me, in the end I find it a bit much, but the hopheads should be well served with this one. Much thanks again to my Winnipeg connection Rod for getting this beer into my hands. (770 characters)

Bottle: Poured a cloudy deep amber color ale with a rather larger frothy head with good retention and good lacing. Aroma of citrus and grapefruit hops with nice caramel malt backbone. Taste is not bitter at all but more dominated by citrus and grapefruit notes with some light piney notes as well with a huge caramel malt backbone. Body is full with limited filtration and good carbonation. Very good execution of a West Coast style IIPA. (438 characters)

A - A nice dark amber/orange colour with half a finger of thick creamy head. Hazy with sediment floating around.

S - Juicy earthy and citrus hops. Some nice bitterness comes through but a very sweet caramel malt backbone cuts through the bitterness. Overall the nose is more malt forward.

T - Very sweet caramel malts dominate the palate. There is a nice bitterness from the hops and some earthy notes but overall the hops provide bitterness and not a lot of flavour. The bitterness lingers in the finish.

Poured from the bomber sized bottle into a tulip pint glass. MY FIRST HALF PINTS!! I'VE BEEN WAITING SO LONG!

Great shining brass dark amber body, and crystal clear. Head is white, but incredibly sudsy and shampoo like in appearance. Four fingers off the pour but still manages to sit around, little lacing, what is is spotted and scattered thin.

Received this bottle from Shadman. Thanks! From information given by Half Pints, this bottle is 1 year old.

Copper color, slightly veiled with very little head formation. Pours was timid which has probably didn't helped the head creating. The aroma presents some caramel notes and piny and citrus hops. Pretty intense in the aroma too. I like it! Wow pretty intense in the mouth. Notes of caramel malts and citrus with a very very dry finished. Very bitter. Well balanced even though it is very aggressive and intense. Very tasty. Warms. Complex body. I really like the feeling that the taste lingers in the mouth for quite some time. Some similarities with Corne du Daible from Dieu du Ciel.

Another good brew from half pints even though the bottle is old. Wish I could get my hands on their beers more regularly, thus tasting them fresh! (841 characters)

I am very fortunate to have tried this Canadian gem. Pours with a fair sized head that hovers 1/4 of an inch along the top, more than enough lacing ( makes me happy). Has a murky orange color.

Smells of fresh hops, pineapple and grapefruit, Although this is all hops the malt is more than evident ( on the nose and palate) almost caramel like.

The taste is bang on for the style. Has a big hoppy/piney bite, with a lingering sweet and bitter (sounds weird but it is bitter and sweet at the same time) finish that holds on to the back of my throat. Very well balanced and very well made. This beer is heavy but it tastes so good that's what makes it so drinkable for me. Thanks to oakbluff for the sample. (706 characters)

Poured from a bomber into a MoB teku glass and shared with friends.Thanks to tbadiuk for the bottle!

Pours a deep orange/brown color that speaks of the malt profile to come. The nose is very malty with some nice citrus and spice coming through in the background. On the palate, this beer is still very malty with lots of caramel, light brown sugar, bread dominating. There is a decend wack of hops there with some citrus, floral notes and some spice trying to dry the finish out. The mouthfeel is a bit heavy but still nice considering the malt profile. Maybe I am a hophead, but there seemed to be too much residual sweetness in this beer for my tastes. (661 characters)

From a 341 ml brown bottle, bought as a single. Green beeswax around cap and neck (it smells good!), 100 IBU's listed on the label.

Already aromatic once the cap is removed and poured into the glass. A cloudy deep amber in appearance, short tight creamy off-white head.

Once again the nose is incredibly aromatic, some sugary sweet malt, burnt toasted notes, pine and grapefruit rind, all of it beautifully wedded together.

That marriage continues evenly within the flavour, sweet, toasted mildly bready malt that effortlessly blends with grassy, herbal, earthy, citrus rind hops, almost equally as sweet on the finish, with the hops eventually lingering on longer in the aftertaste.

The mouthfeel is medium-bodied in general, yet seems to come across as surprisingly thin for such a robust ale, very light carbonation.

I like this double IPA a lot, well done, and is getting up there with Dogfish Head's 90 Minute in my books, very well balanced and refined, hardly an obnoxious out of control behemoth. Half Pints is setting the bar with this one. (1,054 characters)

O: This is a big beer: big on hops and and big on malts. But it is balanced in such a way that both these extremes dance across your palate and neither is overpowering. This is (one of) Half Pints' secret recipes, and is a seasonal beer to reflect fondly upon and look forward to year after year. (686 characters)

As with the first bottle, the hops just aren't as bold as you would expect from a DIPA. Sweet sticky caramel malt body with a hint of biscuit gives good depth like you would want, nice fruity sweet hops, heavy on the citrus with hints of floral, with a light bitterness in the body that follows through to the finish with little lasting bitterness. Silky Smooth carbonation works well, good malt base - but needs some jump to the hops to balance it out.

Not a bad attempt but without the hops (which is what a DIPA is all about) this one falls short of expectations, needs a more complex hop bouquet as well as more bitterness to balance the sweetness of the malt base. 2nd bottle has raised my score ever so slightly but still not enough to justify me seeking it out again. (1,091 characters)

***2009 Vintage (Aug. 15 according to the post in Beer Releases). Green wax covering the top.***

Big thanks to stagger for this one. Enjoyed this afternoon while alternately watching the Als conference final and the Hola episode of Dora with my daughter.

Poured from a 341ml. bottle.

Appearance: A deep-orange brown body with a healthy 2-3 finger head. Body is quite hazy with a dark brown cloud right in the middle of it that slowly goes upward. Lots of lacing left on the side of the glass. Digging the look of this brew.

Smell: Not as strong as i would have liked but a good resinous hoppy aroma with a dose of malt. A bit of orange & pine thrown into the mix.

Taste: Malt hits me first mixed in with a nice edge to it. Slowly leaves the place to a surprisingly sweet taste. Good dollop of hops but not overdone. Has a sugary aspect to it. Finishes with a spice-like bite and a good piney aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: Very smooth with an medium body. Good balance but i found it ended just a little bit thin for my taste. Bitterness isn't quite up there for a 100 IBU beer. It's still quite good in the palate though.

Drinkability: Insanely & easily drinkable. No problems gulping this and would have another for sure.

Overall: A very tasty brew. More conservative than i would have thought but it is quite a solid DIPA. Very much enjoyed it. (1,347 characters)